Tooling Design Engineer

Tooling Engineer

The Tooling Engineer designs and validates durable, metal production tooling that supports medium-volume assembly operations. This role focuses on creating robust fixtures, jigs, gauges, and lifting or positioning devices that withstand daily use, meet stringent safety expectations, and improve build repeatability and efficiency. The position is highly mechanical and design-focused, with involvement across the full tooling lifecycle in a dynamic, fast-growing environment.

Responsibilities

• Design and develop manufacturing support tooling, including assembly fixtures and jigs, positioning fixtures, go/no-go gauges, and lifting devices or fixtures used in production.
• Create production-ready, durable metal tooling suitable for consistent daily use in a medium-volume manufacturing environment, rather than primarily prototype or 3D-printed tools.
• Perform or support basic structural and strength validation to ensure tooling can withstand expected loads, wear, and operational conditions.
• Own safety-critical design considerations for tooling, particularly lifting fixtures, to ensure tools do not fail under load and do not create safety risks.
• Collaborate closely with manufacturing and assembly stakeholders to ensure tooling meets build requirements and improves repeatability, ergonomics, and overall efficiency.
• Incorporate feedback from production teams to refine and continuously improve tooling performance and reliability.
• Document designs, design intent, and usage guidelines clearly so that tooling can be safely and consistently used on the production floor.
• Support troubleshooting and iteration on existing tools to address performance issues, durability concerns, or evolving production needs.
• Contribute as a founding engineering team member, taking ownership of projects and participating in the full lifecycle from concept and design through validation and support in production.

Essential Skills

• At least 2 years of experience designing manufacturing tools, including fixtures, jigs, gauges, or lifting and positioning devices.
• Demonstrated experience designing metal tools that can withstand a medium-volume production environment and daily use.
• Hands-on experience with fixture and jig design, with a strong preference for life and drill fixture experience.
• Ability to perform or support structural and strength analysis to validate tooling under expected loads and conditions.
• Proficiency with a major CAD system (such as SolidWorks or similar) for mechanical and tooling design.
• Strong mechanical engineering or manufacturing engineering background with a focus on tooling design.
• Experience designing tooling that meets safety expectations, especially for lifting fixtures and other safety-critical applications.
• Capability to collaborate effectively with manufacturing and assembly teams to align tooling design with process and volume requirements.

Additional Skills & Qualifications

• Experience in aerospace or similarly demanding engineering environments is beneficial.
• Background in gauge design and go/no-go gauge development is a plus.
• Experience with fixture design and jig engineering for assembly and drilling operations.
• Exposure to medium-volume manufacturing processes and an understanding of durability and maintainability requirements.
• Open to candidates with mechanical or manufacturing engineering degrees who are actively building tooling experience, provided they can demonstrate understanding of volume and process needs.
• Interest in working on complete product and tooling lifecycles rather than only a small portion of the design process.
• Passion for innovative technology and a strong sense of pride and ownership in engineering work.
• Comfort working in a fast-paced, startup-like environment with evolving priorities and high-impact projects.

Work Environment

This role is fully onsite, five days per week, on a first-shift schedule. The environment has a startup vibe, combining hands-on engineering with a strong focus on cutting-edge autonomous systems. While the team occasionally works late to meet critical deadlines and may work some weekends, this is not a constant or intense grind; the culture emphasizes being invested and passionate about the work rather than overwork. The organization takes excellent care of its employees, including daily catered lunches and covered dinners when work runs late. Team members enjoy the opportunity to work on complete lifecycles of advanced technology, contributing as founding engineers with significant room for growth and potential equity opportunities. The culture is collaborative, mission-driven, and focused on building exciting, safety-critical technology that has meaningful real-world impact, with leadership that invests in employees' fulfillment and long-term success.

Job Type & Location

This is a Contract position based out of Austin, TX.

Pay and Benefits

The pay range for this position is $45.00 - $65.00/hr.

Eligibility requirements apply to some benefits and may depend on your job classification and length of employment. Benefits are subject to change and may be subject to specific elections, plan, or program terms. If eligible, the benefits available for this temporary role may include the following: • Medical, dental & vision • Critical Illness, Accident, and Hospital • 401(k) Retirement Plan – Pre-tax and Roth post-tax contributions available • Life Insurance (Voluntary Life & AD&D for the employee and dependents) • Short and long-term disability • Health Spending Account (HSA) • Transportation benefits • Employee Assistance Program • Time Off/Leave (PTO, Vacation or Sick Leave)

Workplace Type

This is a fully onsite position in Austin, TX.

Application Deadline

This position is anticipated to close on May 1, 2026.